Apparatus for refining metals by heating.



- A. HELFENSTE-IN, APPARATUS FOR IIEFINING METALS BY HEAT ING.`

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 5| I9l2.

Patented Mar. 20, 1917.

4 fuel heating cannot be employ 'at the .same

UNITED STATES PATENH." OFFICE.

Lois HnLrnN's'rm, orlv'mima, AUSTRIA-rinivoanr.

arraiia'rus ro'a nmnmeirmans iir nr arme.

To all whomzt may concern: lle it known that I,.ALois HELFEN-STEIN,- citizen of the Re ublic ofA Switzerland, and a Lresident of ienna, `Austria-Hungai'y, have invented 'new and useful Im rove'ments in Ap aratus. for'Reiining Meta s. by Heating, o which the followin is a specification. In refining metals hea ing first by means of 'fuel and subsequently by electricity through the medium of electric arcs or slag .resistance heating is known. 4According to that process the current conveyn electrodes must be inserted each time ine'fiiriiaeefor use and be removed therefrom during the fuel heating period. In' consequence o the wearing away of the electrod electric 'and time.y C.

Further the introduction,- to the bathof electric short-circuit heating by second class conductors after the ordinary .proce is carried out for the4 urpose of obtaininghigh class steel in a essenier converter or.` Martin furnace isalso known: The electric 'current in this case is caredtransversely through the bath which in consequence` of it at depth' requires very great current t strength for its heating. l, f

The rent invention isca'rriejd out'in the following manner: In s 'l tuhiil'a'rfur-` nace a metal liatlilayer4 wlii' is lverg thin relatively to the diliineter-- is heated ythe 'direct passa of current'in the lon tudinal .direction o the metal hathas w as by fuel heating over 'thebath .for the purpose of effecting the relinii'gprocess more quickly and -moresatisfa y. The thin extendedmetal bath presents onthe one hand to the Vfiielheatiiig and to the-refining substances a surface' which 'is large relatively to the cross section of the batli s o that the refining action is' more quickly effected. On the other hand the heatin of shallowbaths rc quites less str en 'o current and the ex- -tended form of t e bath enables higher pote'iital tobe employed, so' that the electric heating is more intense, and the process accelerated.A Moreoverthe'gas removalperod (deoxidation) in connection 'wherewith cooliii must be again effected, 'can be morequickly carried through.

As co ared with the known process re ferred tout is possible with the present inventon -n consequence of the, extended form of the furnace and the arrangement of the current producing pole at the ends of the termediate resist.- inces. 'would make the process practically impos- Brmtiea' e! Lette" Patent' I z itented Mar. 20, 1917. Animation md :wie s, im. iraniani.

' bfurnace, to 'effect by' powerful cooling action without particule 1 disadvantage, complete .freezin on each side of the bath to the extent o 1 meter, whereby `it; is possilile to ductiveA material, md to avoid powerful in Such a measure sible with the furnace employed for known processes.

.In consequence of the ample heating of the metal bathby Athe electric current it is lnot necessa that-the fuel heating should the h lgh tim rature over the bath .as with ordinary .is aconsiderable advantage uc'ing furnaces, which as regards the admissibility' of fiel and A slighter strain on the apparatus.

- Now in p rder tu ee'ct a thorough i'nixn ofthefmetal an eventuali of the additional substances, during t e I'irocess the eithereacts a rotary or swinging movement around the longitudinal axis or 'a movement inthe direction of the Tle two m'ovem 'may' also be employedin combination.

Fi res 1 and- 2 of the drawing are respectively a vertic il longitudinal section and e suite iy'mmitr'fomea, Martn furnace 1 is-cliargx with fluid or co 'zliar'ge and addi inal sub- -stances 'and .recei ves the heating gas for cari-'ying out the normal 'MartinA process arewater cooled and so that they' come into direct o intact with the metal bath,V and are connecter' outside the furnace with the source of cui' rent, but notwi'thst'a'nding their arrangemlenrare situated outside the l :fuel heating 'zone and'armthus not exposed to the high, tempi rature.

'i The tu anism. Theinove ment can be effected intermittently, so thai theintermiions are always concurrent' with the. carrying out of' 1j. transverse 'section of a furnace 'for carry 'in 4out the,l r'ocees'.'l Y

l through the o enings 2 .throughtlie.geneiator 3.1 In-the bottom of ics ular fuiiiaee is 'suitably'seated on rollers 6 and 4cai be swung and rotated 'arouiidits axis by .a suitable driving mechlnel 8 within which a worm the process. As shown in Fig. 1 and indicated in Fig. 2, the furnace in its center is provided with roller races 7 for the reception of the rollers 6 and separated by a chanear 9 is rovided meshing with a lworm 9 on a sha t 10 providedwith a, hand wheel 11 for rotating said shatand by means of the worm gear also the furnace around its longitudinal axis. Having 'now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that whatI claim is nAn apparatus for refining metals byheat- Y ,ing comprising in combination, a. long tubular furnace provided-with charging openings 

